The LA Phil has launched the four-night series, which takes places on select nights of LA Phil performances, from 5 until 7:30pm at participating restaurants, and then at 8pm for the show at the Walt Disney Concert Hall. It’s indeed a very intimate night of dinner and classical music!

The way it works is that you start out at the restaurant, with the option to get happy hour-priced drinks. Around 5:30pm, all guests are led to a reserved dining area for a prix fixe dinner menu and a presentation from a member of the LA Phil. The entire dining experience ends just in time so that you can make the 8pm LA Phil performance at the Walt Disney Concert Hall.
One of the best aspects of this series was the ease and intimacy of it all. Although CHAYA was pretty packed as usual, the setting for LA Phil diners was very mellow and calm. It wasn't too crowded or noisy. It’s nice to roll up to one of LA’s top restaurants for a fantastic, leisurely dinner, and then get a glimpse into what it’s like being in one of the leading orchestras of the world. And, since it was a small group, David Allen Moore, the LA Phil bass section’s 4th chair and guest speaker last Friday, was able to elaborated extensively on the music we were going to hear that night. He also gladly took questions from the audience (shout out to David for answering my question about his rehearsal regimen!).

The “Get Your Phil: Dinner & Concert” series is only happening for three more nights in October and November, including tonight. CHAYA Downtown was the first restaurant where it took place, but other participating restaurants include Leka, Border Grill and Blue Cow Kitchen & Bar, all located in the downtown area. I haven’t been to Blue Cow, but I’ve been to Leka and Border Grill, and have nothing but great things to say about both. Their prix fixe menus can be found online, on the LA Phil website.

So the next time you’re planning to see the philharmonic and are in the mood to grab dinner at one of downtown’s top-notch restaurants, I highly recommend taking advantage of this “Get Your Phil: Dinner & Concert” package before it’s too late.